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UN Women Grant for Gender Equality and Human Rights Support (Switzerland)

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Human Rights

Deadline: 30-Jun-2026

UN Women has launched a call for proposals to engage a Responsible Party to provide technical, analytical and convening services that strengthen gender equality and women’s rights engagement within the UN human rights system. The assignment will support country-level analysis of human rights recommendations, implementation roadmaps, regional workshops, stakeholder consultations and policy-oriented reporting.

The selected Responsible Party will work with approximately 6–9 UN Women country presences across different regions. The work will help translate international human rights recommendations into actionable national priorities through evidence-based analysis, strategic planning and engagement with stakeholders.

Programme Overview

UN Women is seeking proposals from eligible proponents to serve as a Responsible Party for an assignment focused on gender equality and women’s rights within the UN human rights system.

The selected Responsible Party will provide technical, analytical and convening support to strengthen how UN Women country offices engage with international human rights mechanisms and apply recommendations at the national level.

The assignment includes country-level analysis, regional workshops, stakeholder consultations, analytical products and a thematic retreat.

Main Objective

The main objective of the call is to strengthen connections between international human rights recommendations and national-level implementation for gender equality and women’s rights.

The assignment aims to:

Key Focus Areas

The call focuses on technical analysis, human rights engagement and policy-oriented support.

Key focus areas include:

Role of the Responsible Party

The selected Responsible Party will provide technical, analytical and convening services.

The role will include:

Country-Level Support

The Responsible Party will work with approximately 6–9 UN Women country presences across different regions.

This country-level work will focus on assessing engagement with key UN human rights mechanisms and identifying opportunities to advance gender equality and women’s rights.

The work will help country offices better use international recommendations in national advocacy, planning and programming.

Human Rights Mechanisms Covered

The assignment will examine engagement with major UN human rights mechanisms.

These include:

These mechanisms generate recommendations that can help guide national action on gender equality, women’s rights and girls’ rights.

What is the Universal Periodic Review?

The Universal Periodic Review is a UN process through which the human rights records of all UN Member States are reviewed.

It provides recommendations that governments can use to improve human rights protection.

For gender equality and women’s rights, UPR recommendations may address issues such as violence against women, discrimination, access to justice, political participation, education, health and social protection.

What are Treaty Bodies?

Treaty Bodies are committees of independent experts that monitor how countries implement international human rights treaties.

They issue observations and recommendations that can help guide national reforms.

For UN Women, Treaty Body recommendations can provide important evidence for advocacy, policy engagement and programme planning.

What are Special Procedures?

Special Procedures are independent human rights experts appointed by the UN Human Rights Council.

They examine specific human rights themes or country situations.

Their reports and recommendations can provide important insights into women’s rights, gender-based discrimination and emerging human rights challenges.

Country-Level Analytical Briefs

The assignment will include the development of concise analytical briefs for participating UN Women country offices.

These briefs should identify:

The briefs should be practical, clear and useful for country-level decision-making.

Implementation Roadmaps

The Responsible Party will also prepare practical implementation roadmaps.

These roadmaps will help country offices translate human rights recommendations into actionable priorities.

Implementation roadmaps may include:

The goal is to make international recommendations easier to use in national planning and implementation.

Virtual Regional Workshops

The assignment includes virtual regional workshops for participating country offices.

These workshops will support:

Workshops should be designed to help country offices move from analysis to action.

Human Rights Council 20-Year Stocktaking

A separate component of the assignment will review the Human Rights Council’s contribution to gender equality and women’s rights during its first twenty years.

This stocktaking will examine how the Council has addressed gender equality and women’s rights through its outputs, processes and engagement.

The review will help identify trends, lessons learned, challenges and opportunities for future action.

Mapping Human Rights Council Outputs

The Responsible Party will map relevant Human Rights Council outputs related to gender equality and women’s rights.

This may include:

The mapping will help show how gender equality and women’s rights have been addressed over time.

Stakeholder Consultations

The stocktaking process will include consultations with key stakeholders.

Stakeholders may include:

These consultations will help capture diverse perspectives on the Human Rights Council’s contribution and future priorities.

Policy-Oriented Analytical Product

The findings from the mapping and consultations will be consolidated into a policy-oriented analytical product.

This product should highlight:

The product should be accessible, evidence-based and useful for policy dialogue.

Thematic Retreat

The Responsible Party will design and facilitate an in-person thematic retreat.

The retreat will bring together approximately 30–40 participants.

It will provide a platform for focused dialogue, knowledge exchange and reflection on emerging priorities related to gender equality and the rights of women and girls within the UN human rights system.

Purpose of the Thematic Retreat

The retreat will support deeper discussion on a priority issue related to gender equality and women’s and girls’ rights.

The retreat may help participants:

Expected Outputs

The selected Responsible Party is expected to deliver practical and analytical outputs that support UN Women’s engagement with the UN human rights system.

Expected outputs may include:

Who is Eligible?

Eligible proponents must meet the mandatory requirements and pre-qualification criteria outlined by UN Women.

Applicants should be able to demonstrate capacity to deliver technical, analytical and convening services related to human rights, gender equality and women’s rights.

Suitable proponents may include organisations with expertise in:

Proposal Assessment

Proposals will be assessed based on compliance with eligibility requirements and the ability to deliver the required services.

Assessment will consider whether the proponent can provide:

Why This Assignment Matters

International human rights recommendations can support stronger national action on gender equality and women’s rights.

However, recommendations often need to be analysed, prioritised and translated into practical implementation steps.

This assignment matters because it helps bridge the gap between global human rights mechanisms and country-level action.

By supporting UN Women country offices with analysis, roadmaps and convening, the project can strengthen advocacy, programming and national stakeholder engagement.

How the Assignment Will Work

The assignment will combine country-level analysis, regional learning, global stocktaking and thematic dialogue.

Step 1: Select the Responsible Party

UN Women will assess proposals and select a Responsible Party that meets the required eligibility, technical and pre-qualification criteria.

Step 2: Engage UN Women Country Presences

The selected Responsible Party will work with approximately 6–9 UN Women country presences across different regions.

This engagement will help identify country-specific priorities, challenges and opportunities.

Step 3: Analyse Human Rights Recommendations

The Responsible Party will review recommendations from the Universal Periodic Review, Treaty Bodies and Special Procedures.

The analysis will identify recommendations related to gender equality, women’s rights and girls’ rights.

Step 4: Prepare Country Briefs

Concise analytical briefs will be developed for participating country offices.

These briefs will summarise relevant recommendations, implementation challenges and strategic opportunities.

Step 5: Develop Implementation Roadmaps

Practical implementation roadmaps will be prepared to help country offices translate recommendations into actionable priorities.

These roadmaps will support planning, advocacy and engagement with national stakeholders.

Step 6: Conduct Virtual Regional Workshops

The Responsible Party will organise virtual regional workshops to support learning, exchange and strategic planning.

These workshops will help country offices apply the analysis and roadmaps in their work.

Step 7: Conduct Human Rights Council Stocktaking

The Responsible Party will map the Human Rights Council’s contribution to gender equality and women’s rights over its first twenty years.

This will include document review, consultations and analysis.

Step 8: Prepare Analytical Product

Findings from the Human Rights Council review will be consolidated into a policy-oriented analytical product.

The product will identify lessons, trends, challenges and future opportunities.

Step 9: Facilitate Thematic Retreat

The Responsible Party will design and facilitate an in-person thematic retreat with approximately 30–40 participants.

The retreat will support dialogue and reflection on a priority issue related to gender equality and women’s and girls’ rights.

Common Mistakes to Avoid

Applicants should avoid the following mistakes:

Tips for a Strong Proposal

A strong proposal should:

FAQ

1. What is UN Women seeking through this call?

UN Women is seeking a Responsible Party to provide technical, analytical and convening services that strengthen gender equality and women’s rights engagement within the UN human rights system.

2. What will the selected Responsible Party do?

The Responsible Party will conduct country-level analysis, prepare implementation roadmaps, organise regional workshops, support stakeholder consultations, prepare analytical reports and facilitate a thematic retreat.

3. How many UN Women country presences will be involved?

The assignment will work with approximately 6–9 UN Women country presences across different regions.

4. Which UN human rights mechanisms will be covered?

The work will examine engagement with the Universal Periodic Review, Treaty Bodies and Special Procedures.

5. What is the Human Rights Council stocktaking component?

This component will review the Human Rights Council’s contribution to gender equality and women’s rights over its first twenty years through mapping, consultations and analytical reporting.

6. What is the purpose of the thematic retreat?

The thematic retreat will bring together approximately 30–40 participants for dialogue, knowledge exchange and reflection on a priority issue related to gender equality and the rights of women and girls.

7. Who can apply?

Eligible proponents must meet UN Women’s mandatory requirements and pre-qualification criteria and demonstrate the ability to deliver technical, analytical and convening services.

Conclusion

UN Women’s call for proposals seeks a Responsible Party to strengthen gender equality and women’s rights engagement within the UN human rights system.

The assignment will help connect international human rights recommendations with national-level action through analysis, implementation roadmaps, workshops, consultations and policy-oriented reporting.

Eligible proponents should demonstrate strong expertise in gender equality, women’s rights, UN human rights mechanisms, stakeholder engagement and practical implementation support.

For more information, visit UN Women.

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